Vegetable oils like palm oil, being the triglycerides of fatty acids, have a number of excellent properties and can be used to produce valuable polymers. Many of us may not realize that we are surrounded by polymeric materials such as polyethylene, polypropylene and polyurethane (PU). The nature of PU foams and products depends very much on their formulations. The foams can be rigid, semi-rigid or flexible, and their characteristics determine their applications either in furniture and mattresses, construction and building materials, adhesives and coatings, thermal insulators, automotive industry, etc. The major reactants are polyols and isocyanates. The polyols are mostly from petrochemicals, but now some can be replaced by natural-based resources like palm oil polyols. Some catalysts and the appropriate additives are also added to give the complete formula, or recipe for a PU foam.

Main Research: Dr. Hazimah Abu Hassan